“We have a problem with dozens of worms under the bed”, writes this reader about the brown-striped bug with bristles on its rear pictured below. “The first issue happened about 1.5 years ago. We found lots of worms under the bed, then made sure to clean it all up, by moving the bed and every closet in the room, and made sure the floor was clean. Then, we kept looking under the bed for several weeks and made sure they didn’t get back. We thought the worms may be related to food, so we made sure no food would enter the bedroom. Yesterday we found out there is a new occasion of the worms, again under the bed. This time we know it’s not related to food, we wonder maybe they are related to the wood of the bed, but we’re still trying to figure out what it is. Location is Israel. Thanks.”

Firstly, we want to thank our reader for the excellent photos, the best of which we have included below, as well as for the helpful amount of context. Great photos and context are vital for us to be able to identify any given organism we are asked about. Secondly, we just want to preface our identification by saying that we assume the worms our reader found one and a half-years ago looked identical to these, and as such we will treat them as the same species. If that is the case, then we think that, in both instances, our reader has been dealing with carpet beetle larvae.

Carpet beetle larvae do indeed have nothing to do with food. These critters feed on organic fibers found in soft materials, mostly textiles. Besides carpets, this includes clothing, upholstery, and yes, bed sheets. It even includes loose hair and fur. For that reason, it is not uncommon to find carpet beetle larvae around one’s bed when one is experiencing an infestation of them, which seems to be exactly what’s happening in our reader’s case. We do not think this is one long infestation that has been going on for one and half-years: otherwise, we think our reader would notice more significant damage and would probably have seen far more worms since the last incident. They are probably two separate, isolated infestations.

Whatever our reader did last time seems to have worked, so we suggest she do that again. That said, she does not specify what type of cleaning she did, so we just want to clarify what type of cleaning is required when it comes to such an infestation: namely vacuuming and laundering. Vacuuming the floors, rugs and carpets, and laundering any potentially infested textiles (in this case she will definitely want to launder her bed sheets first) at the highest temperature they can withstand, is essential to eliminating any larvae and eggs. In this case, since so many larvae are being found under the bed, it is possible that the eggs are being laid on the underside of the mattress, so it might be a good idea to clean that area as best as she can. Likewise, preventative measures she can install include storing unused garments in airtight containers, sealing sizable cracks in walling and flooring, and ensuring that her window screens do not have holes in them.

In conclusion, we believe our reader has been finding carpet beetle larvae under her bed. Physical contact with them can cause a rash, so recommend avoiding touching them, but other than that, they are not harmful to humans or pets, only the textile items in one’s home. We hope this helps, and we wish our reader the very best!

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